US Navy SEAL Parachute Training: By Sea, Land and Air

That’s how they used to do it
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When we think of US Navy SEALs, we often picture special ops forces jumping off amphibious assault boats or emerging from the water under cover of darkness, guns ready, eyes focused.

We don’t necessarily picture paratroopers jumping out of aircraft. But that is a role that Navy SEALs occasionally have to perform. And they receive ample parachute training at the Naval Special Warfare Advanced Training Command near San Diego, CA. The command was set up in 2007 to train Navy SEALs exclusively.

To help out, small business qualifier Tactical Air Operations in Coronado, CA recently received a $49 million indefinite-delivery/ indefinite-quantity contract to provide support for Navy SEALs’ parachute training…

The Navy SEALs recruits go through an intensive training regime. First, recruits undergo 8 weeks of basic conditioning, including weekly 4 mile timed runs in boots, timed obstacle courses, and swimming distances up to 2 miles wearing fins in the ocean.

Second, recruits undergo 8 weeks of diving training, which focuses on combat SCUBA drills and exercises. Third, they have 9 weeks of land warfare training, which concentrates on teaching land navigation, small-unit tactics, patrolling techniques, rappelling, marksmanship, and military explosives.

Then, at the end comes 3 weeks of basic parachute training to prepare recruits for when they have to attack from the air. And this is where Tactical Air Operations comes in. The company will provide turnkey support for Navy static line and free fall parachute training.

Under the contract, Tactical Air Operations expects to provide support through April 2015. The contract was competitively procured through an electronic request for proposals and 2 offers were received by the Naval Air Warfare Center Training Systems Division in Orlando, FL (N61339-10-D-0008).